Hello, I'm new here. My cat Tiger was just diagnosed with a vaccine-induced fibrosarcoma that's inoperable and un-treatable (other than radiation that will cost $4-6,000 which I can't afford). He will be 10 next month and he has diabetes and kidney disease. These latter conditions are well maintained and his blood sugar and renal levels are steady. I found the hard lump on his shoulder about a month ago. I made an appointment with the vet for the following week and by the time his appt. time came, the lump had doubled. The vet said he thought it was a sarcoma but did a needle aspiration test. It took several days and the results came back inconclusive. That cost $200 to find out nothing. He couldn't get me in for another week. He said he would remove the lump and send out the mass for a biopsy at the same time. By the time I brought him back in the lump had double again. The vet said he was up all night thinking about Tiger and that he couldn't do the surgery ... he said it would be too invasive and would probably kill him. He said he would have to amputate his leg and remove part of his chest cavity and could possibly paralyze him due to the tumor's proximity to the spine. He said he wanted to biopsy first to see if it was by chance it was something else that was more treatable. The biopsy cost as much as the surgery would have cost. Several days passed (while the lump grew) and yep, it's a sarcoma and it's non treatable. So I'm out all of this money that I couldn't afford any way and I don't know if I have any options left.

Right now he's alert and other than favoring his non-tumor side when he sits and lays down, appears healthy and happy. The vet said he couldn't give me a time frame as to when it would start to really impact his quality of life. He said it's localized and probably won't spread but it will continue to grow. What I'm wondering is if anyone has dealt with an extremely advanced and aggressive sarcoma and had a positive outcome? I'm also wondering for those who have had a cat with this prognosis to help me understand what to expect. What were the stages and did your pet pass away on his own or did you have to put him to sleep? I just want to know what to expect.

Thank you.

04-16-2010, 12:45 PM

krazyaboutkatz

Welcome to PT.:) I'm so sorry to hear about Tiger.:( Although I haven't experienced this type of cancer before, my Sunny had squamous cell carcinoma which was a very aggressive form of cancer. He had it in his lower jaw.:( I could've put him through chemo and radiation treatments but there was no guarantee and it was also very expensive. I just decided to try to keep him as comfortable as possible and my vet gave me a time line of 3-5 months.

I found out in early Dec.2009 and I had Sunny put down on Feb. 28th 2010.:( I just watched for his quality of life and he began losing a lot weight, not eating very well, and throwing up a lot of the food that he had eaten. He also seemed to be very tired most of the time and in some pain. I know it's a hard thing to say goodbye but letting a beloved animal go is a very kind thing to do. They are then pain free and aren't suffering any more. Sunny was only 9 years old and he had been with me since he was 8 months old. I miss him every day but I know that he's in a better place.

I'll keep Tiger in my thoughts and prayers and I'm sure that he'll let you know when his time has come. Please take care. (((HUGS)))

04-16-2010, 06:19 PM

Catty1

A few people have had success with something called Transfer Factor. If nothing else, it might help your furbaby be more comfortable. TF - like Essiac - makes the body system alkaline, which cancer cells are not supposed to like.

illustr8r used that on her cat Hamish. He had a different cancer and was given two months to live. That was almost a year ago, I think. He even outlived his cancer-free brother, sadly.

I'll send her a link to your post.

HUGS

PS - are you near a vet school at all? They sometimes have new things happening.

04-16-2010, 07:32 PM

Medusa

I'm sorry that I can't be of any help to you. I just wanted to say that I do hope there are some options for your dear kitty and that you still have some quality time w/him. Keep the faythe. :love:

04-18-2010, 09:37 PM

Moesha

I had a kitty that had fibro sarcoma. It was on his gums rather than vaccine induced. He was diagnosed in early September last year and was put to sleep on October 5th. If you search the Cat Health section, you can read about his situation. His name was Morgan. I'm very, very sorry to hear about your situation. Give Tiger as much love and attention as you can. You won't regret it.

Hi
I am sorry to hear this, I know how heartbreaking it is. Our senior baby Sammy was diagnosed at the beginning of March with fibrosarcoma. I was petting his head one Friday morning and felt a bump on his head next to his left year. We took him in next Mon to our regular vet who too a needle aspiration sample and sent it in to the pathology lab. While waiting for the results we scheduled surgery for removal of the mass. The biopsy was sent in as well and it came back as a fibrosarcoma. We took him to an oncologist who recommended removal of the entire ear (internal and external) or radiation.

Sammy is a very sensitive kitty and does not take stress too well. While he was healing from the removal surgery he lost 6oz and was scratching his neck like crazy around the E collar so we he would not take well such a major surgery. The radiation would have to be done in Columbus which is 3 hours away from us. It would be a daily session under anesthesia for three weeks and he would have to be boarded there. He spent 2 years at a shelter before we adopted him 5 years ago and we know he would think we abandoned him.

So we went to a holistic vet who put him on Transfer Factor Plus and Neoplasene (this is homeopathic chemo). He takes this everyday and he has been doing well. Pls pm me if you want more details on these treatments.

Best wishes to you and you baby!

04-22-2010, 10:54 AM

kb2yjx

I, too, am so sorry to learn about your kitty. I am a strong believer in good quality of life and maintaining the cats dignity. Prayers for your kitty and you!!

04-22-2010, 07:12 PM

jenluckenbach

Our dear beautiful Rutherford had this. :(

It moved to his lungs, so when breathing became too difficult for him, we knew it was time to say good bye.

I am so sorry that the prognosis isn't more hopeful.

Love him while you can and be strong when he can no longer be.

{{{{{HUGS}}}}}

04-26-2010, 01:22 PM

lilredwriter

Update on Tiger

Thank you everyone. Tiger passed away last night. I took him in for the biopsy last Monday and by Friday his condition took a turn for the worse. He was fine right after the biopsy but on Friday he stopped eating. He would drink water but he could barely swallow. It seems that the tumor spread to his lungs and the exterior tumor grew shockingly large and had red welts on it. He could barely walk and you could tell it caused him pain. But he held on until Sunday--just lying on the couch. I can't believe how fast this took him. I am thankful that I didn't have to put him to sleep and that I was able to be with him when he went ... but it was so incredibly sad. He didn't want to go. He kept fighting. I don't want to ever have another pet vaccinated!

04-26-2010, 02:14 PM

Medusa

I'm so very sorry to hear of Tiger's passing. I'm sure it was tough watching him get worse but, thankfully, he passed w/o your having to make that awful decision for him. He knows how much you loved him and now he's at peace at the Bridge. RIP, Tiger. You will be sadly missed. :love:

04-26-2010, 03:50 PM

Freedom

RIP Tiger.

I came back to this thread to see what others had offered for ideas. I never expected to see he had passed already. I am so very sorry for your loss.

Any ideas which vaccine he had in that spot? My vet and I had recently discussed this vaccine induced cancer. She said that there had been a cluster of issues in the 1980's early 1990's, in USA alone. No other countries. So it was surmised that there was a "bad batch," that something in the processing had gone wrong. She said there hadn't been reported cases in quite some time. Next thing, I see your thread on this!

My cats are indoor only, and now I only get the rabies vaccine for them; required by law. My vet only offers Purevax, which does not use the adjutant which was thought responsible for the sarcoma. Problem is, Purevax is only good for one year. The other rabies vaccine is good for 3 years, which is why we were discussing the matter.

04-26-2010, 04:12 PM

pomtzu

I'm so sorry, and you have my sincere condolences. I had hoped for a better outcome.

RIP dear Tiger. :love:

04-26-2010, 07:26 PM

Catty1

RIP Tiger! How sudden...but I know he was comforted having you with him.:love:

Play free at the Bridge, dearest Tiger.:love::love:

04-26-2010, 07:45 PM

katladyd

Since my cats are totally indoor cats, after their kitten shots, they have not been vacinated. Way too scary. I am so sorry for your loss. Take comfort in the fact that he knew you were there at the end.:love:

04-27-2010, 02:04 AM

krazyaboutkatz

I'm so sorry to hear about Tiger's passing.:( Now he's pain free and playing up at Raindbow Bridge with all of the other kitties. RIP sweet boy.:( Please take care. (((HUGS)))

All of my cats are also indoor only and I used to get them vaccinated yearly for FVRCP and Rabies but now I've stopped. My current vet actually recommended it and she's fine with it. She also said that in cats 10 years old and older that you should stop all vaccinations. Kitten and puppy shots are needed though and then one more adult vaccination with the rabies and then that's all for indoor cats.